Angelique Kerber: My Performance
Angelique Kerber talks through her second-round win over Ashleigh Barty at the Brisbane International.
Angelique Kerber talks through her second-round win over Ashleigh Barty at the Brisbane International.
Francesca Schiavone first came to the Tashkent Open several weeks shy of her 20th birthday. The teenager was ranked outside the Top 100, but stunned top seed Anna Smashnova in the first round en route to her first WTA final.
“It’s been nearly 16 years since I was last here,” she said in an interview with Sunder Iyer. “I have great memories of Tashkent. The city has changed a lot from what I saw then; it’s great to be back.”
Schiavone went on to win her first Grand Slam title just over a decade after her initial breakthrough in the Uzbek capital, eventually peaking at No.4 at the start of 2011.
The return to Tashkent is a bittersweet, full circle moment for the 36-year-old, who is once again outside the Top 100 despite a title run at the Rio Open earlier this year. Still, Schiavone showed she still had some magic left with a straight-set upset over No.7 seed Sorana Cirstea.
“This match was a tough one. Sorana is coming back, so I had had to play good tactics and win every point. I played well and feel confident.”
Confidence has been hard to come by for the former French Open champion, who began the year playing qualifying at the Australian Open. Adjusting to the shift in results has admittedly been a process.
“When you are Top 10, it is different level, different money, different services, different satisfaction. As your ranking drops and you are outside Top 100 everything changes in life; the entire system changes and you are no longer as special you were.
“But I love the sport and still enjoy playing.”
It was unbridled passion and pure love for the game that brought Schiavone to the top of the sport, and it appears that same love is what keeps her on tour to this day.
“I play because I enjoy it. I’m happy to play tennis – even now. It’s tough, and there are some decisions one has to take about their careers sometimes. I decided to continue playing. I would like to thank God for keeping me healthy and allowing me to still play at this level.”
Debuting on the WTA tour back in 1996, Schiavone has had a front seat to the radical changes the game has made, noting a far more physical sport than rewards experience over youth.
“One has to play a minimum of 20 shots in a rally. The matches are longer; one has to play for around three hours. Tennis is going faster and faster.
“A lot of young players used to be around, but today the overall age of players playing the tour is higher. Many players in their 30s are winning matches and events. If one is fit, they all have an opportunity. Players were younger in the sport back then, and were under lot of pressure. There was no time to relax because of the busy schedules and commitments; many of them burnt out.
“But now, I see them taking time to practice, be physically fit, and ensure longevity in the sport, playing for longer time spans.”
Schiavone has found it’s never too late to make such changes, the likes of which were apparent when she declined a wlldcard to the Olympic tennis event in Rio de Janeiro.
“Obviously, things change. When you are young, you can fly from the US to China and back to US and back to China without much thought. Flights were easy then, but now, at 36, you make different decisions and ensure you get rest, practice, and be fresh for competition. One learns to work at an easy pace and enjoy the game, which is what I’m doing now.”
With no plans of stopping anytime soon, there remains a plan for what’s to come when the veteran decides to call it a career, one that will channel her love of the game into the next generation of Italian tennis.
“I hope one day I can serve my country and its players. I want to work with them and help them in the sport.
“It would be great to give back what I learned, because it truly was a gift.”
All photos courtesy of Getty Images.
Garbiñe Muguruza takes on Svetlana Kuznetsova in the quarterfinals of the Brisbane International.
Karolina Pliskova produced a clinical display on Friday night, swatting aside Elina Svitolina to take her place in the final of the Brisbane International.
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Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Sania Mirza produced a near flawless display to overwhelm Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina, 6-2, 6-3. The result ensures that Mattek-Sands will replace Mirza as the World No.1 when the new rankings are released on Monday.
Highlights from all of Saturday’s finals action at the Brisbane International.
Agnieszka Radwanska has Thursday’s shot of the day at the Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open.
SYDNEY, Australia – No.5 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova began her title defense at the Apia International Sydney with a decisive 6-1, 6-4 win over Irina-Camelia Begu.
“I started the year quite good with the feeling on court,” she said in her post-match press conference. “Sometimes the results don’t go with how you’re feeling, but I feel very good at the start of the year.”
It was a year ago that Kuznetsova came to Sydney to begin what would become her best season in nearly six years, but shrugged off the pressure of going for a second straight victory.
“I’m not thinking about defending my title. The trophy is at home and nobody can take it away from me. This is another year and another opportunity to play. I always feel like I need a lot of matches at the start of the year. I remember going to Auckland and not winning a single match. Then I came here and it gave me matches, confidence.
“If I played five weeks in a row at the end of last year, I can do three or four weeks here.”
The Russian veteran showed off similar form for much of the match against Begu, who struggled through the 31 minute opening set.
.@SvetlanaK27 has found her range early! pic.twitter.com/Gie2qUY2z3
— WTA (@WTA) January 8, 2017
Winning 10 of the first 12 games, the former World No.2 was on course for a seamless victory before the Romanian mounted a mini-comeback, drawing even at 4-4 in the second.
“What happened? What typically happens in a tennis match. I think I started to play more defensively, and she felt like she had nothing to lose. I got too passive.
“We practiced in December because she was also in Dubai; we played a practice match and that was good because I was able to remember her game.
“It’s a different style; she stays farther behind the baseline, not so much inside. She serves good, and it was hard to read.
.@Irina_Begu is on ?!
She breaks again to level the second set at 4-4! #SydneyTennis pic.twitter.com/FR3QXYMWRy
— WTA (@WTA) January 8, 2017
Kuznetsova closed the door from there, and served out her spot in the second round, where she’ll meet either 2011 US Open champion Samantha Stosur or compatriot Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.
“Overall, I think I did good, except for those four games when I didn’t play so good.”
.@SvetlanaK27 starts @SydneyTennis title defense with 6-1, 6-4 win over Begu! pic.twitter.com/fMeKx8at2m
— WTA (@WTA) January 8, 2017
WUHAN, China – Dominika Cibulkova completed her arduous journey to the Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open final with a thrilling victory over Svetlana Kuznetsova
Watch live action from Wuhan on WTA Live powered by TennisTV!
After over two and half hours of thrilling tennis, Cibulkova added the finishing touch to a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory by thumping a backhand onto the baseline. In the final she will face the winner of Friday’s evening session, Petra Kvitova.
“It feels great. I’m really tired right now, but the feeling to be in the final is unbelievable, and that’s why I love it,” Cibulkova said. “It’s just a great win for me today.”
Cibulkova’s path to the final has been far from straightforward. Rain earlier in the week forced the Slovak to play both her last 16 and quarterfinal matches on Thursday, making the level of play against Kuznetsova all the more remarkable.
“I would say that nothing has been easy here. I’ve had really tough matches from the first round so you don’t expect anything easy from this tournament. I’m really looking forward to another final and I want to keep going, keep playing like this,” Cibulkova added.
Didn't expect Cibulkova to have enough left in the tank for a performance like that. Love her attitude+it's another final @wuhanopentennis
— Anne Keothavong (@annekeothavong) 30 September 2016
Outthought and outfought in the first set, Cibulkova went back to the drawing board at the start of the second. Her change of tack reaped immediate dividends, bookending a trademark drive volley with a couple of perfectly executed drop shots to break in the opening game.
“I have my notes with me [on court] for a couple of years now and it’s helping me, so it’s nothing new for me but it’s something that keeps me focused and helps me remember things to do – it’s just a reminder for me. But it helped me today.”
While this advantage did not last for long, the tide was turning, Cibulkova taking four of the last five games to force a decider.
With the contest in the balance, Cibulkova somehow managed to summon her best tennis. Serving at 4-4, 15-30, she finished a series of energy sapping points with spectacular winners to edge ahead. This sequence seemed to drain the belief from Kuznetsova, who soon found herself staring at three match points. One was enough, Cibulkova pouncing on an inviting serve to reach her fifth final of the season.
The result not only guarantees a return to the Top 10 but also boosts her hopes of reaching the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore presented by SC Global for the first time. She will now occupy one of the eight qualification spots on Monday, regardless of the result in the final.
